The Familiar Taste of Poison
by Lady.Katie512
Summary: Naturally nobody had any idea that he would show up. From the rumors spread, he wasn't even supposed to be alive. He did show up. He singlehandedly stole the Tesseract and kidnapped a few SHIELD agents. However, the worst was when Loki shoved that damn spear at her chest and took over her mind. She had lost everything and everyone that she ever cared about.
1. Chapter 1

One

" _Drink the wine my darling,_ _"_ _you said..._

Connecting with the cold, hard concrete floor woke her up. At first, the SHIELD agent was barely aware of her brief loss of consciousness. It took the moment her head connected with the ground to realize she had blacked out. The agent immediately sensed trouble, though the room was dark and her ears were ringing like they would back in Iraq. She laid her palms flat on the ground and pushed herself up, feeling her arms shake as she stared at the concrete below her while odd shadows of black and blue danced around the room. It was the same blue as the Tesseract, and as the energy portal it created.

Realization hit her like a train, while she laid across the tracks leading from ignorance to a worrisome realization. It sped up her memory, connecting the recent events until an ominous, solid shadow covered her. With a short breath in, and split second decisions, the agent pushed off the ground with her left hand. She spun quickly around on the concrete, while her right hand pulled her Glock from her thigh holster, before her back hit the ground. Not affected by the impact, her sights were already aimed up at the god, straight between his eyebrows. His aim however, was even quicker than the agent, and before she could fire upon him, Loki had the point of his scepter connected lightly with her chest.

Overwhelming fear and dread filled the agent, her vision blacking out momentarily and she was sure that she was about to die, before something much more frightful kicked in. The agent could feel parts of her brain shutting down, a dull though fiery ache forming in the base of her skull. She lost her motor skills first, unable to move or speak before her vision went black. The agent and soldier she was wanted to fight back, to shoot Loki, to stop this madness. The woman she was wanted to scream and cry as she was flooded with another being entirely. The black in her sight was giving way to a blue glow that steadily grew more and more intense as she drowned inside herself. Suddenly, there was nothing, no black, no blue, no drowning or screaming or fighting, there was absolutely nothing.

The empty shell of a soul left inside her, filled with a mind not her own, immediately replaced the Glock into it's holster on the agent's thigh. A pale hand reached down, the scepter removed from her chest, and helped her to her feet. A whole new monster rose with her, embedding itself like a leeching tick and replaced her free will with the wants and needs of a tortured and nearly forgotten Norse God.


	2. Chapter 2

Two

 _Take your time, consume all of it..._

Lacy had been awake, without the urge to sleep for nearly thirty consecutive hours. She was tired and her eyes were dry and sore. Her hands ached, along with her feet. Her mouth was dry and her tongue felt swollen. To top all this off, she had a strange ache, almost like a burning, in the base of her skull. However, Lacy was at ease. There was no need for sleep. The only need she had was to stand outside, holding her gun and watch for anybody who wasn't supposed to be here.

She yawned and the action made her dry lips crack just a bit. It was the first time that Lacy had done anything in hours. She felt horrible but was content, almost happy. Even though her subconscious kept screaming something was very wrong, she felt very, very right.

A door opened to her left and as somebody walked outside Lacy's stiff neck turned to see Agent Barton. Her eyes were slow to focus on him until he was standing right next to her.

"Loki needs you inside," Agent Barton said to Lacy, his eyes burning with a phantom-like blue glow. He didn't sound as used up as she would imagine of herself, though she did not speak to him. No reply was needed, and instead Lacy nodded once in acceptance, feeling her neck protest violently. Clint Barton turned and led Lacy inside the abandoned subway, leaving the few German soldiers that were on watch with her alone.

Inside, they immediately boarded an escalator and Clint led Lacy down to where Professor Selvig was working on something to do with Loki's Tesseract. In the pit of her stomach, fear started to swell and Lacy couldn't remember why.

Passed all of that, Lacy followed Clint to a heavy green curtain, pulling it back to reveal Loki. He was seated on a military style bed in his own separate room divided by the thick, woolen curtains from the rest of this place. Where they had settled was mainly void say for military and scientific gadgets, and the like.

"Leave us," Loki said and the pair didn't have wonder if he was talking to Clint or Lacy. However the burning in the back of their skulls intensified when he spoke.

Clint turned and left without a word, the curtain dropping closed behind him. "You don't need that," Loki stated and Lacy's weary eyes looked down to her gun, which was still clutched tightly between her hands. The joints in her hands and arms screamed with pain when Lacy moved to place the Glock back into its holster on her belt. Securing it in place, Lacy looked back up to Loki, who was now suddenly in front of her, holding out a glass of water. It should have startled her, even scared her, that he could move that fast without her noticing. That's what's Lacy's duty was good for Loki, noticing things. That's exactly why she was outside. Instead, Lacy was unfazed by him.

"Drink that before you fall over," Loki handed the glass over to Lacy, before turning around and placing a metal chair in front of his bed. With no words spoken, and the burning getting slightly worse, she obliged and sat down in the chair. Obediently, she began drinking the water. Lacy hadn't really realized how thirsty she was before the water was gone in seconds. She drank it so fast that there was barely time to taste it. In her mind a sudden spark, something like a lighter void of fuel, told her water wasn't supposed to have that taste. No attention was paid to that thought, as Loki sat on his bed in front of her.

"Feeling any better?" he asked, smirking at the empty glass Lacy had in her hands. She really didn't, and was honestly afraid to lie to him. She had no idea how to respond. Lacy was content but her body felt broken. "I thought so," he stood again, walking around Lacy. Once behind her, Loki began to gently remove the pins from her blonde hair, letting the golden waves fall around her shoulders. In any other situation, Lacy would find this an extremely uncomfortable position but right now she didn't think twice about it.

Once finished, Loki walked away from her and reached for his scepter while she stayed seated forward. Loki's footsteps slowly returned and one of his hands fall on her tense shoulder. Goosebumps flooded her washed-out skin as he leaned down, his ice cold breath hitting her neck as he whispered, "I think this may kill you."

The smile was present in his voice but his words didn't trouble Lacy at all. As long as he was smiling, she was fine. She was still content. Loki walked back around her, and she looked to his strange scythe like scepter. He pointed the lethal end of the scepter at her chest, just where her heart was, before she looked up to him. "And," he added after a second, "I know this is going to hurt you, Agent Garrett." Lacy should have been worried but wasn't. She just sat in the metal chair, holding her empty glass and staring up at Loki.

Suddenly, without warning, Lacy felt as if her very soul was being ripped from her body. The glass she was holding fell and shattered on the concrete floor when she tried to scream from the pain. Her voice was too hoarse and instead just cracked. Every nerve in her body slowly set ablaze, not even to mention the fire in the back of her skull exploding. Her vision was full of color, overloaded along with her hearing and other senses. Everything was vivid and painful as she felt her soul flood back into her body.

After what seemed like an eternity, Loki finally took the spear away from her chest, and she fell out of the chair, limp. She landed in the small glass fragments on the floor, tiny cuts erupting with beads of dark blood over her bare skin. Compared to what Loki had just done, Lacy could barely feel the shards ripping through her clothes and skin. It was painful none the less, and when she tried to move out of the fragments her body ignited all over again. Before she could cry out from the slowly worsening sting, Lacy's blue eyes landed on Loki.

"Oh shit," her voice cracked and weakened with each letter but was still able to get her point across.

"Hmm," Loki smiled devilishly. "Surprising."

Staring up at him, though every nerve was still smoldering, Lacy quickly reached for her gun. Before she could properly aim at him, the gun was kicked violently out of her hands. Crying out again, and clutching her hands to her chest while the gun flew across the room, she felt as if her hands had been broken. Then again, all of her felt broken.

"I said you wouldn't need that," Loki scolded her, setting his spear on his bed. He took a step forward and towered over Lacy on the floor, glass crunching loudly under his boots. She attempted to scurry away from him. As she did the glass her body sunk deeper.

"What do you want with me?" She choked out.

"I wanted to know what would happen when I took that enchantment off a mortal," Loki stated blandly. "I needed to know it's power."

"Why me?" Lacy gasped. She wanted to get off of the ground, however since she had fallen her legs felt useless, like Jell-o.

"Don't be conceited. You weren't important. I've got Selvig and Barton and may others who are just as disposable as you. Like I said before, I thought you would die from taking that enchantment away." Something about him, and the way he answered her, told Lacy that he was lying.

"So you poisoned me just in case?" While she spoke, her whole body started to slowly tremble. As if Lacy wasn't tired enough, she wanted very badly just to pass out.

"Poisoned? No. I had my doubts, yes, but I would not need to poison you. The water had a sedative in it." Loki smiled once more, brandishing his teeth at her.

"Son of a bitch," Lacy muttered and gave up, her head falling to the ground. Loki stood up and walked over to her, picking Lacy up before carrying her to the bed and laying her down next to his spear. It was the last thing her consciousness could grasp before loosing herself to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Three

 _"But the roses were only to drain my inspiration..."_

There was a blue swirling haze covering emptiness. A beautiful woman stood in the center of it all and it was blinding her. Smoky wisps of the toxic color flooded her blue eyes. She stood in a delicate green dress that barely clung onto her svelte body, spinning in circles as she searched though the vast blue. It eventually bled out into unfamiliar constellations and brightly colored nebulae. She felt the coldness begin to crush her while slowly floating lifelessly away from the blue. The pressure on her throat was great, great enough to where choking itself was impossible. Slowly, from the colors of the galaxy, Lacy saw a face form in front of her. Soon it was joined by a body and as she recognized who was in front of her the background began melting slowly away.

Loki's hand tightened around her white neck. Lacy went limp, suspended in the air by him. Her vision was far past blurry, and she felt her eyes wanting to pop clear out of her skull. He dropped her suddenly, and she fell limp onto a concrete floor. Lacy took a rushed, much needed gasp in as blue surrounded her once again. Still struggling to see, Lacy heard voices, familiar voices. Those voices belonged to familiar SHIELD agents. Nick Fury's voice stood out above all else, mentioning something about the Tesseract. Finally Lacy was able to put the voices to their bodies and looked to where he stood, holding a briefcase.

She was back in operation PEGASUS where SHIELD kept the Tesseract. And Loki was trying to steal the Tesseract again. This shouldn't be happening again, Lacy realized. She tried desperately to move but her limbs were mocking her with lifelessness. This wasn't how things happened, Loki was supposed to steal her, not kill her. And the Tesseract couldn't be stolen again, so she couldn't be dead.

This wasn't real.

Lacy's blue eyes shot open in a panic. Trying to keep calm and not give away that she was now awake to any potential occupants of the room, Lacy laid still and listened intently to her surroundings. After a few moments, she couldn't tell if anybody was in the curtained off room with her. Deciding that it may be safe to move, Lacy rolled onto her back and was met with a white hot sting over her flesh. Quickly she sat up to try and alleviate the pain, thinking she had rolled onto something before remembering the shattered glass. Sitting up as fast as she did caused more pain with her stiff joints and sore muscles and a shocked cry escaped her lips.

"Agent?" Lacy heard a voice call out and Agent Barton walked around one of the curtains. Instinctively, she reached for her gun before remembering it was laying across the room, if Loki hadn't taken it. All she was left with was staring at him, it hurt way too much to try and move so fighting would be futile. Instead of attacking, however, Clint simply stood there, staring back at her while waiting for an answer.

"Are you okay?" he asked after a second. Lacy looked to his hands and noticed that they were calmly placed on his belt. He stood leisurely, but she still had no idea how to react to him. Right know Clint wasn't hostile towards her in the least. He genuinely looked worried. "Are you alright, Lacy?"

"G-glass…" Lacy began to explain, her voice cracking horribly, "In my back and side."

"What did you do last night?" he asked plainly.

Lacy didn't know how to answer him. She didn't want him to know what happened last night, and didn't want to risk him becoming hostile. "I fell…" Lacy half-lied as he walked over to where she sat on the bed.

"Uh-huh…" he replied suspiciously, glass crunching underneath his boots. "Grab onto me," he bent down and Lacy hesitantly wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders, allowing Clint to lift her up from the bed. "There's bathrooms and some military medical supplies close to here," he continued, "Are your feet cut?"

"I don't think so," Lacy told him, with a hoarse voice. Barton slowly set her down on the concrete floor, so she could stand on her swollen feet. Still, Lacy relied heavily on Clint's help and clung onto his shoulders. This was when Lacy noticed that she wasn't wearing half of her uniform, just her white undershirt and black underwear. Even her bra was missing. This didn't quite embarrass her, but rather put her in quite the predicament if she had an opportunity to escape. It also made her wonder what Loki had done to her, if anything, if he was the one to undress her.

Clint didn't say a word about Lacy's lack of clothes, but rather grabbed the blanket off the military-style cot and wrapped her in it. "Come with me."

There were more people around the place than last night, most likely German soldiers and scientists, but Professor Selvig was still slaving away over the Tesseract. Loki wasn't hard to miss either, sitting across the way from where Selvig was working, with an almost blank look on his face. As Lacy and Clint exited the curtained off room, she kept her eyes on him until they were past him and Lacy noticed the escalator that Clint had led her down last night. With a burst of adrenaline she could escape, Lacy could bolt up the moving stairs and be gone.

Clint stopped walking almost as suddenly as the thought popped into her head and Lacy's heart slowed. He didn't say a word to her, but turned their path around and walked back, stopping front of Loki.

"Taking her to the bathrooms, she fell in some glass last night and isn't too well off this morning," Clint spoke to Loki, without him having said a word, like he was answering a question. Lacy was only confused for a brief moment, but didn't let it change her expression.

"Two nights ago," Loki corrected him, however he nodded once in approval before looking to Lacy. "I hope you're not thinking of leaving so soon," he spoke to Lacy while still seated on the ground, holding onto his scepter. "I trust you're smarter than that. Don't make me do something rash."

Clint kept Lacy supported at his side and led her away from Loki after a moment of silence between her and the god. Lacy didn't need to respond to Loki to let him know that she understood. She figured he was already in her head. Clint brought Lacy to a bathroom in the abandoned, underground subway, and it was in better shape than she had anticipated. Within was a newer looking military-grade first aid kit. Clint helped Lacy to one of the sinks and left her side to grab it and rummage through the contents.

Lacy took that moment to scan over her tired reflection. She was met with smeared makeup over her sunken eyes and dry lips. Patchy and pale skin clung, hanging, to her face and made the twenty-five year old look more than a decade older. Looking away from her own eyes, Lacy turned on the sink and watched the water pour out of the faucet clear.

While washing her face, Clint returned to Lacy with tweezers and a small bottle of rubbing alcohol. He didn't say anything to her but instead grabbed some paper towels and drenched them with alcohol. The sting made her toes curl and her jaw clench, otherwise her only reaction was turning off the faucet.

"Clint?" Lacy asked, looking back at him as he worked to get the tiny glass shards out of her skin.

"Yes," he answered blandly, concentrating on his current task.

Lacy felt a sting in her eyes as she watched him. She wanted so badly to change him back and leave. They needed to get out of this place. "You're my friend," she stated instead of questioned.

"I'm your ally." His expression didn't change. He wasn't Clint.

Is Natasha still your friend? Lacy wanted to ask. What about your pregnant wife? Is Laura still your wife? Is Cooper still your son? She looked away from his reflection and down to the sink she was gripping, a single tear filled with all her rage and frustration and hurt rolled down the bridge of her nose. It lingered just a moment on the tip before falling into the sink, its small splatter punctuated by the sound of the bathroom door swinging open.

Without a word, Clint set the tweezers on the sink in front of Lacy and stepped away from her.

"Go," Loki commanded simply as the bathroom door swung shut behind him.

Clint moved swiftly for the door and was gone in a matter of seconds. Lacy thought of calling for him to come back but it wasn't really her friend, just an empty shell. An empty shell like she had been before.

"I should have given you a paper cup," Loki stated once they were alone. Lacy couldn't tell if he was trying to be funny or not, her guard was up too high. For her, Lacy was trapped in a corner, wounded and half naked, with nothing to defend herself but tweezers.

Loki smiled at her when she gave no response, and she hated that she wasn't able to tell if he was reading her mind or not. "Let me have a look," he walked over to Lacy and oddly enough she didn't step away. Not even when he was behind her and running his cold fingers across her cut skin.

"I'm not a healer," Loki admitted to her, "however I can do better than Barton was. Take off your shirt."

Lacy, instead of being repulsed or offended, simply looked over her shoulder and saw a fluffy white towel appear in his hands, out of golden sparkling wisps. When he offered it to her, she took it and held it to her breast before pulling off her undershirt by grasping the back of the shirt and pulling it over her head.

Lacy continued watching him through the mirror in front of her, her bare and cut back facing Loki. One of his freezing hands landed gently on her shoulder as he stood behind her, examining the wounds. Using his other hand, Loki moved Lacy's blonde hair over to her opposite shoulder. Lacy tensed as he touched her, and she felt her guard raising to dangerous levels.

"Need I remind you of breathing?" Lacy felt his breath whisper into her bare neck and goose bumps erupted over her skin. She hurriedly took a deep breath in, realizing that she hadn't been breathing in the first place. She wasn't feeling guarded, this was Lacy feeling nervous as a virgin. The goose bumps continued to flood all down her back as his hands continued moving across her skin. Lacy began to tremble before a sudden and shocking pain made her double over onto the sink, her knees giving out.

Loki grabbed onto her, his arm wrapping around her stomach to keep her supported, while the tiny glass shards fell onto the tile floor.

"I got most of the glass for you," Loki informed Lacy, as she clutched the towel to her chest. With a flick of Loki's long fingers, the glass shards flew across the floor away from the pair so that they would be no danger to Lacy's bare feet. The strength had returned to her from the initial shock of pain, but Loki didn't let go of her.

"Brace yourself," he warned her as a second, burning pain hit her. Lacy cried out as she felt her back light on fire for a brief moment. This time she was left panting and supported solely by Loki's arms, like they were lovers.

Lacy quickly shook the thought and pain from her brain and grasped the sink, trying to pull herself away from Loki.

"I've finished," he advised the mortal woman, slowly letting her slip out of his grasp. "You are healed to the best of my ability."

"Thank you…" Lacy felt compelled to say, through chattering teeth. She suddenly felt the fabric of her towel disappear, but as her stomach dropped, she looked down to see herself wearing a plain, tight tee-shirt and baggy sweat pants.

"The pleasure is all mine darling," he replied smugly, happy with her reaction and his subtle manipulations. Lacy looked back up to him then, slight shock showing on her features. "Allow me to lead you back to my quarters," Loki extended his hand, much like a gentleman would, and Lacy had no other option than to accept.


	4. Chapter 4

Four

The Promises were spoiled before they left your lips and...

"Speak to me," Loki said, intently watching the Midgardian before him. She still looked broken, but her spirit was intact. She was just a mortal, but Loki couldn't shake the feeling that she could be so much more. He was torn between his actions and duty. Loki was supposed to have Agent Barton by his side, he was supposed to be the backup. Now, with a childish impulse, Clint Barton was a backup in another sense. Loki could easily kill this woman and correct his path, or he could watch this unfold. With Lacy, he couldn't help himself.

Lacy looked up from the "peace treaty" keeping her occupied to raise a delicate eyebrow at him. Loki had resorted to giving her weapon back in exchange for unknown trust from her. Loki knew nothing she could do with twelve bullets would put him and his mission in jeopardy. He saw it like a safety blanket for her.

"What do you want me to say?" she asked him. Loki stood from is seat and folded his arms behind his back, pacing in front of where she was sat on the ground, cleaning her gun.

"Telling me about SHIELD would prove useful," Loki suggested, still pacing. He couldn't deny that he was growing restless.

"Usually interrogations begin with some sort of... Forceful prompting," Lacy sat up straighter, intently watching Loki.

"You'd prefer I torture you for information when I could ask Agent Barton?" Loki questioned, stopping to look down upon her.

"Semper Fidelis," Lacy responded after locking eyes with the god in front of her.

It took Loki a moment to respond to her, "You're a soldier."

"Marine," Lacy corrected though she didn't expect him to understand her explanation, but knew he understood her loyalty.

"I admire your passions," Loki smiled in approval, "Though I feel something is troubling you," he said after a few seconds.

"You think so?" Lacy raised her eyebrow with her sarcasm. She stood from the ground then, her loaded Glock gripped tightly at her right side.

"Please don't be cross with me, Lacy."

"You're trying to destroy my home, Loki. Of course I'm going to be 'cross' with you," Lacy said, looking away from him in her anger. It was raising her voice and quickening her heart. Loki felt that this could be both a useful reaction, to manipulate her love for her world, or it could become an unnecessary hurdle in conquering Midgard.

"I'm not destroying it, I'm improving it. Humanity is not united and you have a foolish idea of freedom. Freedom without unity it means nothing. Under one united force, there will be no more war," Loki made it obvious to the woman that he was going to declare himself that said "united force" of this world.

"You can't rule the Earth, it's too big. And people won't change, we'll always fight each other because we won't ever have the same beliefs and ideas. Even under one king," Lacy tried reasoning with him.

"It's sounding like you have no faith in me, Agent Garrett," Loki pushed her.

"No, I don't have faith, in you nor humanity. But I'm certain that you cannot rule Earth."

"Perhaps I could show you once the time comes, all humanity would kneel in acceptance before me."

"No, Loki. I don't want to see. I'd rather die fighting than be ruled over," Loki could tell Lacy wanted to walk away from their conversation and in a sudden flash of red anger in his vision, he grabbed hold of her before she could even move.

"Hear me out," Loki rose his voice, "You would not be ruled, you would be ruling. You would have power bestowed upon you which you could not imagine." Even with his sudden anger, Loki was close to making his decision. Better this woman than Clint Barton.

"Loki," Lacy began slowly, "I'd rather die fighting against you than ruling with you."

Of course this choice wouldn't come easily. His hand tightened in anger around her arm before he spoke, "Then you will fight and die amid the humans who get in my way. And as for leaving, you can forget about it. I won't let you. I want you to witness your kind suffering beneath me before I kill you."

Midway through trying to frighten her, Loki let go of her arm and watched her turn and leave once he was finished. Lacy stopped a moment, and Loki's lips stretched back into a sinister smile as he watched her stand alone like a lost child. She didn't remain long before Lacy disappeared into his curtained off room.

Loki himself set off towards Clint Barton and Eric Selvig, intent on gaining information that Lacy would not easily provide.

"This is wonderful!" The professor shouted happily to Loki as he walked over to the plastic curtains surrounding the Tesseract. "The Tesseract has shown me so much. It... It's more than knowledge, it's truth." Loki stopped on the otherside of the plastic, watching the slightly crazed expression of Selvig carefully.

"I know. It touches everyone differently," Loki glanced away to compose himself and his emotions after his fight with Lacy. When he was looking back to the professor he was smiling. "What did it show you, Agent Barton?" Loki then asked, his face serious once more.

"My next target," Clint replied quickly.

Eric Selvig chuckled, "Stick in the mud, he's got no soul." Clint wasn't amused however and slowly turned to face him. "No wonder you chose this tomb to work in."

"Well the Raddison doesn't have three levels of lead lined flooring, between SHIELD and that cube," Clint explained with a harsh tone, and Selvig only nodded before turning to work more on the Tesseract.

"I see why Fury chose you to guard it," Loki acknowledged, and Clint turned back to him.

"You're gonna have to contend with him, sir," Clint explained and they both walked away from the Tesseract. "As long as he's in the air, I can't pin him down. And he'll be pinning together a team."

Loki glanced to him quickly, "Are they a threat?"

"To each other, more than likely. But if Fury can get 'em on track, and he might, they can throw some noise our way," Agent Barton explained.

Loki felt he understood where he was coming from. "You admire Fury," he stated.

"He's got a clear line of sight."

"Is that why you failed to kill him?" he asked, his tone growing darker and Clint stopped walking. Loki moved ahead of him and turned to face him.

"It might be," Agent Barton was slow to answer, but Loki forced the truth out of him. "I was disoriented. And I'm not at my best with a gun." All Loki heard were excuses, but they were the truth.

"I want to know everything you can tell me about this team of his... I would test their mettle." Loki stated after accepting Barton's explanation. "I'm weary of scuttling in shadow." Loki looked up to the ceiling, knowing that he had his fingertips on Midgard, he almost had a hold of it. "I mean to rule this world, not burrow in it," he finally stated, looking back to Clint.

"It's a risk," Clint stated, still truthful.

Loki smiled widely at him, bearing his teeth. "Oh yes."

"If you're set on making yourself known... It could be useful."

"Tell me what you need," Loki walked towards him, still smiling.

Clint Barton took a moment, a glint of delight flashing across his eyes before he walked over to a case and pulled out his bow, shaking it so it would unfold itself. "I need a distraction. And an eyeball."

Loki understood, but still needed a plan. First he needed the help of a scapegoat. "Right," he agreed, and looked to his personal area, curtained off from the rest of this place and hiding Lacy. He said no more and walked off to grab his scepter.

He found he didn't need it when he found Lacy already asleep on the cot. He stepped behind the heavy green curtains, and watched her soundly sleep despite her predicament. It was reassuring to see that she still trusted him, despite what had happened earlier between them.

Loki took a seat across the room from her, his scepter laid across one of his knees as he leaned slightly forward, focusing on her like he had before when she was sleeping. He had a different intent now though, faithfulness through fear would take too long for her proud heart, but he had another way in.

Her breathing hitched in a silent whimper and Loki slightly cocked his head to the side, his eyes scanning down her body before landing back to her face. He couldn't see what she saw, but he could make her feel what he wanted. After only moments, Loki wasn't sure if he was trying too hard but was answered as soon as the thought crossed his mind, breaking his concentration.

"Wait," Lacy opened her blue eyes wide, finding whom she had just previously been dreaming of, sitting in front of her, still leaned over in a metal chair on the other side of the small room.

"Wait?" he questioned quietly.

"You…" She didn't finish. Loki could tell that she was still feeling the full effects of his manipulation. He could see her chest shudder with her breath as if what she felt had been real.

"I," he replied almost tauntingly, his voice was smooth and calm. Loki stood and left the scepter on the chair in the room.

"Tell me," Lacy said to him, "Why did you take your control off of me? Really this time. I can tell you had a reason." She propped herself up on the bed with her elbow, her wanting, blue eyes watching him as intently as he was watching her.

"The same reason you want this," Loki didn't hesitate in answering her, slowly walking over to where Lacy laid on the bed.

"You can read minds?" She asked, though they both knew she knew the answer.

"You don't have to concentrate like that for me to see your thoughts," Loki smirked. He knew that she wasn't but he was loosing her to a sturdy rational. He needed to kill it fast before her mind became too fuzzy.

Lacy remained silent as he walked to the edge of the bed and sat down on the edge, facing her. "And you're hardly trying to keep me out," he added. Lightly he took her chin in his forefinger and thumb, the smirk staying on his lips.

Holding her chin in place he leaned down, barely brushing his lips past her own. Lingering only a moment, he backed off and Lacy reopened her eyes that had fluttered shut automatically. Loki's own shone like brilliant emeralds, darting between the endless sky blue of Lacy's. He could see that she had nearly broken.

"Tell me what you're wanting, darling," Loki spoke lowly, and he had no doubt of what she would ask.

"Fine." Lacy sat up to level herself with Loki, kissing him again, this time not so gently. She felt his cold hands through her shirt, settling themselves on her slender waist. She moved shortly after, breaking their kiss for a moment as her leg swung around Loki so that she was straddling him.

"Is this gonna kill me?" she asked between hasty kisses, acting as if she were an uncontrollable teenager.

"Maybe," She felt him answer into her swollen lips, pulling away to give her a devilishly handsome grin. From that point, where Lacy led them Loki followed.

They ended with Loki behind Lacy, who was on all fours in front of him. He was above her, supporting himself with one arm. The other was wrapped around her waist, keeping her body held up, although she was ready to break in a different way. Loki let her down onto the bed, following her with kisses placed across her shoulder blades.

"Don't think I quite killed you," he whispered, laying on his stomach behind here as she panted.

"Uh," was all Lacy could muster in a replied, before closing her eyes.

Loki chuckled softly, running his fingers along her spine, and saw they were chased by waves of goose bumps. His mood was drowned slowly, remembering suddenly what he was trying to do in the first place. This deception had worked too well.

"Lacy," he whispered.

"Yeah?" she asked, yawning.

"I… I need a favor from you," he said, his elated tone leaving him for good.

"What is it?" She asked, turning onto her side so she could face him. The solemn look she was met with worried her.

"I'll let you leave if you help me with something. You can go back to SHIELD."

Her narrow eyebrows furrowed at him, perplexed and not liking where he was going with this. "Loki?" She asked, "I have no idea what you mean."

"I'll tell you everything, tomorrow. You won't like it but after I'll let you go," he said and hastily crawled over her and off of the bed. As he stood the armor he wore before reappeared on his skin, like they were burning with gold smoke.

"Where are you going?" Lacy called after, but Loki didn't answer her. He purposely left Lacy naked in the room, grabbing his scepter before making his exit. He had succeeded, too well and had somehow lost himself in her, as she had lost herself in him. Now he wasn't second guessing if she was the one he would prefer to keep over Clint Barton. He was second guessing using her as he had intended for a distraction.


	5. Chapter 5

Five

 _I tell myself that you're no good for me.._ _._

"SHIELD has facial recognition?" Loki asked.

"Yes. I'm certain they're searching for all of us, not just you," Lacy answered Loki, staring out the back window of a limousine as it slowly stopped at their destination.

"Good," with that said Loki exited first, standing and observing their surroundings for a moment before offering his free hand to Lacy.

"…Good?" Lacy quietly asked herself before accepting Loki's help. She emerged looking quite like a goddess herself. Loki had adorned her in a delicate and backless evening gown in a shimmering emerald green. In Lacy's opinion, with the way the fabric was nearly translucent and hung off her body, she felt over-sexualized. She didn't feel like herself at all, through how unearthly beautiful Loki had made her and the dead filled nerves from what she knew would come of this night.

Loki smiled at Lacy, now gently grabbing her arm with his free hand, as his other held the top of his disguised spear, before kissing her forehead. "I find it astonishing that a being such as yourself is capable of projecting such beauty."

"Humanity can't be beautiful?" Lacy asked quietly, stepping away from him, and watching the numerous Germans make their way to the party she and Loki were crashing.

"Its not impossible, just impractical for only mere mortals."

"You speak so lowly of humans, why do you want Earth?" Lacy looked back to him.

"A promise I made to my brother," Loki sneered, turning away from her.

"You promised Thor that you'd take over and rule the Earth?"

"No. That I'd pay a visit to his precious girlfriend and make her suffer…"

"Oh," Lacy said simply, folding her arms across her chest. "So you Asgardian Royalty really love you some Earth women, huh?" She tried, jokingly, but the look on Loki's face when he turned back to her was confusion, mixed greatly with anger.

"I'm not Asgardian royalty, I never was accepted. And I always had to live in the shadow cast upon me by my brother's glory," Loki spat.

"Please don't scold me Loki… I meant no offense," Lacy defended herself, slightly shocked that he had grown so angry.

"No, I'm not scolding you, darling," Loki's face instantly softened, cupping Lacy's cheek in his hand gently, "My apologies."

"So, you're really only here for Jane Foster?" She asked him seriously.

"No, I'm here for the Tesseract. Jane is just a conveniently placed extra perk of ruling Earth."

"I still don't think you could do it, even if you were to become king."

"Your lack of faith troubles me," he told her. "Perhaps once you've seen my full power you'll understand." Lacy didn't bother arguing again, though, knowing they would only repeat last night.

"You're troubled," Loki whispered into her ear, lingering for a second. Lacy barely turned to look over at him but remained quiet. He looked troubled as well but still seemed calm. She was a nervous wreck on the other hand, but only sighed and looked forward once again.

"You're the one who can read minds," she said finally and Loki laughed without any emotion.

"Its distasteful to know what everybody thinks all of the time," he told her, his fingers slowly running across her collarbone as he spoke, a grand pearl and emerald necklace appearing around her neck. "On the other hand, you aren't letting me in."

"I'm not?" She asked, slightly amazed because she wasn't even trying to block him out. "How?"

"You wouldn't understand, it's something that you'd have to experience first," Loki smiled at her question. She would understand soon enough.

"Really?" Lacy asked, now fully turned to Loki, a small, crooked smile adorning her face as well.

"Yes. It's difficult to describe, almost like clouds or smoke... You're looking devious. Please don't ask me to guess what you're thinking."

"Oh," She replied, her smile growing. "And here I was thinking the only reason that you engaged me in conversation was for my own amusement."

Loki smiled at her before nodding in the direction of the party. "Shall we?"

Loki led them forward, towards a crowded entrance. "How are we supposed to get inside?" Lacy asked him quietly.

"I would jest about your knowledge of doors but with your increasing insecurity, I'll keep that to my own," Loki smiled, continuing to lead Lacy towards the entrance like the gentleman he was disguised as, her arm laced with his.

"You're just going to walk past security with this thing?" She asked motioning to the device in Loki's coat pocket. "And not to mention SHIELD has most likely made you the most wanted man on the planet."

"Yes, we will simply walk past the entrance and the security. Please, darling, trust me."

"You're mad, Loki," Lacy said, her palms starting to sweat.

"You would think that…" Loki trailed off. Like he said he led the two of them straight up to the entrance. Amazingly nobody paid them any attention. Though, once inside, Loki made it a point to avoid most people. She was astonished, still, that nobody cared. They stopped once they were a flight of stairs above the party, standing over everyone else.

"Am I still crazy?" Loki asked, whispering into her pinned up, golden curls.

"Yeah," Lacy replied bluntly, "That was nuts." Loki laughed out loud, and she looked away from the crowds below and up to him. He had led them up onto a balcony isolated from other party goers. Lacy watched as his mood began to change. Loki knew what must be done, and how dead set Lacy was on performing the task he asked of her. Now he was wishing he had never given her the choice.

His fingers lightly trailed down her bare back, stopping to settle upon her waist. "You're sure this is what you want, Lacy?" he asked after a moment's silence, silently willing her to stay with him.

"Yes," She sounded confident but wasn't. Lacy was still nervous about the possible repercussions tonight could have.

Loki sighed, "You're nerves are more radiant than your beauty."

Lacy smiled inwardly to herself, replying with, "You're full of flattery. Anyways, I don't really have a choice do I?" She looked away from Loki and back to the crowd below.

"It would please me greatly to see you walk out that door and have the limo take you back to my base," he gently took her chin and turned her head so that she was back to facing him, locking her blue eyes in place with his green eyes. "It would be easier for you."

"You know I can't do that Loki." She was completely serious now. She had to get away from him, no matter what he wanted and what her heart wanted. It was her duty to get back to SHIELD.

"Yes you can, you are just to stubborn to admit to yourself that it's what you would rather do."

She stepped back from Loki a few feet, biting her tongue. Though Loki was right, she refused to agree. He still knew he was in the right however, it was plastered on his face through his agitation.

"Lacy, please rethink this."

"You asked me to do this, and I will. I have to. And anyways I have priorities with SHIELD."

Loki was close to forcing her, taking over her will again and making her walk out. Then again, she might be safer this way. They would end up together instead of Clint Barton protecting her... Loki still couldn't stop himself. "I asked you to do this for me thinking you would refuse-"

"Well you were wrong!"

"-I don't want you to, I don't want you to leave me but that is what you want and I cannot keep you chained to me. It's the same reason I took the enchantment off of you," Loki continued, despite her interruption.

Lacy slowly shook my head to Loki's confession though, forcing her feelings down and drowning her wants. "You're trying to justify your selfishness."

"No, I'm trying to surpass that and rationalize this situation with you."

"Murder isn't rational," Lacy argued, taking another step back from Loki.

"Lacy," Loki's voice met her with a cold, gentle hand placed upon her arm and he stepped towards her. Slowly, panic tried to burst through the equilibrium Lacy had managed to reach. Loki had pulled her closer to him by now, and his lips fell lightly onto her forehead. She sighed into him, still trying to keep her mind clear of his poison.

As Loki pulled away from her, Lacy's mind was set and she knew what she had to do. Quickly, she leaned up to kiss him, not letting him speak. It was the only distraction she had and the only way to keep him quiet. He held her closely to him, and if he knew what she was doing he showed no signs. Both of his hands settled on her waist and Lacy draped her left arm around his neck, while her right was slowly aiming for what was in his pocket.

Lacy's fingers grasped what they were searching for and she leaned back as it was pulled out of Loki's coat pocket. She was stone at this point and could no longer feel the pain of the decision she had made, however she also knew that if Loki said anything more she may not be able to keep course. When he took a breath in to speak she threw herself into autopilot and ran.


End file.
